Course content
What drives fashion change? How are digital innovations like AI and social commerce reshaping consumer behavior? What role do sustainability and ethical practices play in the evolution of fashion? How do global value chains impact sourcing and production? What strategies can brands employ to navigate the rise of digital influencers and shifting consumer values? These are just a few of the critical questions explored in this course, designed to equip participants with the knowledge and skills to navigate and innovate within the dynamic fashion, lifestyle, and beauty industries.
This course introduces students to the fashion, lifestyle, and beauty industries, providing them with analytical concepts and practical knowledge to establish, develop, and understand enterprises in these fields. Students will gain skills applicable to roles such as entrepreneurs, consultants, managers, analysts, and strategists.
The course begins with an overview of the fashion, lifestyle, and beauty sectors, exploring their commonalities, distinctions, and interconnections. It examines key issues and forces driving change, including digitalization, globalization, and sustainability.
A significant focus is placed on the materiality of fashion, understanding the physical and sensory aspects of fashion products, and how these influence design, production, and consumption. The course also delves into research on fashion consumption practices, including dress and wardrobe habits, recycling and repair, the use of e-commerce and resale platforms, and engagement with influencers and co-creation of content. Students will explore how and why consumers engage with fashion, and the social, cultural, and economic factors that shape these behaviors.
Through a combination of theory, company case studies, and presentations, the course delves into entrepreneurial processes and the opportunities and challenges of developing new ventures, innovative products, sustainable business models, and strong brands within these industries.
Students will acquire conceptual tools and practical insights to address issues faced by entrepreneurs in areas such as finance, creative design and product development, sourcing and production, distribution, retailing and merchandising, sustainable management, communication, and brand building.
By the end of the course, students should be able to competently formulate, develop, or rethink business models for companies in the fashion, lifestyle, and beauty sectors. The course also aims to enhance students' understanding of strategic, ethical, and cultural issues, including diversity, equity, and inclusion, global sourcing and value chains, labor rights, and socio-economic development in the Global South.
The course draws on various disciplines, including fashion and design theory, entrepreneurship studies, business model theory, business economics, strategic brand management, consumer culture theory, and CSR and sustainability theory.
See course description in course catalogue